


i am a merman that you dreamt

by alex_archer



Category: Borderlands (Video Games)
Genre: F/M, Fuck Canon, there will be more maybe but it'll probably be sex, this is a merman tim au that's been established i am so sorry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-22
Updated: 2020-01-22
Packaged: 2021-02-27 13:08:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,563
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22357690
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alex_archer/pseuds/alex_archer
Summary: tim's a hot mermaid shipwrecked bc nisha's ex-bf, jack, is an asshole... tim's dick is out for the world to see and nisha LIKES THAT---tim @ me, nisha @ pandoranmama
Relationships: Timothy Lawrence/Nisha
Kudos: 5





	i am a merman that you dreamt

**Author's Note:**

  * For [PandoranMama](https://archiveofourown.org/users/PandoranMama/gifts).



Last night had been the worst storm Nisha had seen since she came to the island. The service to her phone had been suspended, so whatever had hit the rock must’ve been close to a hurricane. It had been over for hours when Nisha dared to venture outside, and she should have known better to not expect at least some carnage. Pieces of what must have been a ship littered the beach, most likely a yacht sought refuge in the bay and they had been wrecked upon the rocks. She found her legs carrying her to inspect the debris, though she wasn’t entirely aware of why. To be fair, loads of strange things had been happening on this island, more than she could explain.

As she came upon the rocks, the sight made her wonder; was coming to the island worth this? She found, amongst the wood and cloth, a young man. He didn’t seem to be much older than twenty five, and something about the serene look on his face told her he must have been a good one. She was no stranger to dead bodies, but this one in particular seemed to draw her in. It wasn’t the fact that he was completely naked, and she had to admit he was well fit to be so. It was something about the way he looked, it felt off. His mouth was soft, slightly parted, as if he was about to say something. His eyes, though, it was something about his eyes. They were closed, but she could see those eyes. She’d seen his eyes before, and she knew she had before she even thought about leaning in closer, something she should have never done.

His eyes shot open, and he sputtered out some water as he jolted up. Jumping back, she narrowly avoided their foreheads crashing. Amazingly, she found herself launching back close to him, grabbing his shoulders to help him sit up and breath. His skin was slimy, like feeling the underneath of a moored boat. A small jolt of electricity zapped between them, and droplets of water vaporized to steam around her fingers. It was strange, and yet entirely familiar. But as she stared into his heterochromatic eyes, she knew she had seen them before, “You’re the thing that watches from the end of the dock!” A sentence no one should ever have to say out loud in all sincerity.

However creepy it was, she still felt like she knew him. Not just from the times she’d seen him peering up out of the water, or the times she’d found fish missing from her drying rack to look out on the water and see reddish brown hair descending into the depths. It was a mystery she thought she’d solved, the island water or the sun messing with her brain. Now, looking at him, as she scanned _all_ of him, she shook her head. Of course her idea had been stupid, mermaids weren’t real… and this man was _definitely_ a man. There was no doubt about that.

Her attention was shot back to his face as he tried to speak, a horrendous screeching pouring out of his mouth instead. Her hands left his skin to dart up and cover her ears, and his face contorted as he saw the look of discomfort cross her face. His own expression contorted into one of confusion, and he closed his mouth. Instead, he pointed out to the rocks at the end of the bay. She followed his fingers and saw the remains of the yacht, her attention traveled back to him as his voice came out again. This time, she was prepared for the onslaught of shrill clicking, but the words that came out surprised her.

“M-Man… Stole self bottom,” and he motioned to his legs as she stifled a laugh. As she realized what he’d meant, her laugh caught in her throat. She was right. She didn’t _want_ to be right.

“Who stole it…” her voice trailed off as all the pieces came into place. She looked back out at the wrecked bones of the yacht, finding her feet once again taking her somewhere she didn’t realize she’d be going. His protestations carried behind her, but she was already knee deep in the water retrieving a piece of drift wood, flipping it in her hands to reveal the three letters that confirmed her fears; ‘IOS’. _The Helios_ had been his ship, Jack’s. The reason she’d left the mainland, or any sort of established land, had come back for her.

Turning slowly back to the man on the rocks, she dropped the wood, “We have to get you cleaned up, and clothed… Not that I don’t like what I see, handsome.” Her voice caught in her throat, the anger threatening to seep through. Jack would most likely have survived the wreckage, he was too stubborn to die. He wouldn’t just settle for using the gifts from the island, gifts she’d been taking for granted, he’d want to render the entire rock _his._ He’d done it with his business, and he’s done it with her. To tell the truth, she’d fled his wrath and influence. Now, the only man she was _truly_ afraid of had followed her here. He’d be cropping back up, that could be sure. If he knew about the merman, something Nisha wasn’t even sure she could believe was actually true, then he had to have been studying the island for a while. Something about this was wrong, it was too much like Jack to exploit things, he must have a plan. She was a match for him, but not at the cost of the island and this new creature Nisha is strangely drawn towards.

“Me help,” the voice brought her back to the very man, and she watched as he struggled to stand and walk on his legs. He appeared as if he’s done it before, she locked that observation away to ask him about later, for now she needed to know she could get him safe and herself as well.

“Of course, I’ll help you, kid,” She stepped forward to grab his elbow, letting him use her to steady himself. He took her arm, but his face contorted into strained confusion.

“Not yes, me help-” and he pointed to her, desperately trying to motion at her to get her to realize what he meant. The action was almost childish, and the frustration was clear in his movements. It was endearing to Nisha, and she knew what he meant as if she knew him.

“You want to help me?” She looked up as he nodded, a sheepish smile crossing his lips. “You just survived someone taking your tail, and then a hurricane wrecking the ship you were on. Judging from that crippled foot, Handsome, you wouldn’t be much help against Jack. Thank you, though. Better to get you cleaned up and rested, then we can figure out where Jack is and what he’s planning.”

“Me help!” The kid’s insistence had Nisha stopping, looking up at him as he struggled to find the words. “J-Jack? Jack. Man do bad town.” Nisha had never been one for word puzzles, truly she’d never been one for words. As she listened to him try to explain, she attempted to piece together his fractured sentences.

“You mean… help me figure out what he’s gonna do?- No, don’t eat that!” Nisha swatted his hand as he reached to snatch a fish off the drying rack. A chuckle rippled through her chest, as he almost hissed at her denying him the fish. She leaned down and retrieved it for him, handing it over, “You’re the one who’s been stealing my food, aren’t you, kid?”

He took the fish and dropped it in his mouth, swallowing it almost whole, and looked down to nod in confirmation at her. The chuckle in her throat shifted to a low laugh, this creature was intriguing. She got him to the cabin and inside, getting him onto the couch. Tossing a blanket to him, Nisha went through the kitchen to fetch him some water as she thought about what he’d said outside. Coming back, she saw him trying to affix the blanket around his waist, similar to how some of the villagers wore their clothing. It hit her, then, what he’d meant, “Jack’s planning on hitting the town, isn’t he? He’s going to go after the townspeople to get to me? That bastard!”

The man looked up at her, his confusion present on his face, “Yes.”

The clarity of the word, and the confirmation had her re-imagining her stance on how to approach this. Maybe the kid _would_ be able to help her, if only they could communicate better, “What’s your name, handsome? You clearly understand spoken English, we can work on it together while we figure out what to do about Jack. I’m Nisha.”

He thought for a moment and then spoke, none of the sounds coming from his mouth even vaguely resembled human noises. She picked out a syllable, well what she thought was a syllable, and ran with it, “I’ll call you Tim. Now let’s figure out how to get my asshole ex off this island, and get you back in your tail.”

_And figure out how mermaids exist… and why Nisha is so attracted to this one in particular._


End file.
